Dear Beagle Editor, Does the Council think that the CBD is still exempt from Sea Level Rise? While they look to formulating considerable constraints on property owners just across the Clyde River at Surfside, Long Beach and Maloneys Beach they have the temerity to believe that the Batemans Bay CBD area or properties along beach Road warrant such conditions.
Batemans Bay promenade: December 5th, 2017 - photo by Josh Burkinshaw
Michael SAXON, Director South East Branch Regional Operations recently (Dec 7th) advised "Eurobodalla Shire Council are currently preparing a Coastal Management Program for the region’s coastline. Council’s decision to prepare a Coastal Management Program was made in consultation with OEH.Eurobodalla Shire Council engaged an expert consultant to complete a comprehensive assessment of coastal processes and hazards to inform the preparation of their Coastal Management Program. The completion of this work is essential to identifying the risks to the community from coastal hazards and can be found at: http://www.esc.nsw.gov.au/inside-council/project-and-exhibitions/major-projects-and-works/coastal-projects/coastal-zone-management-plan The information that was presented in recent community consultation sessions relates to identifying areas exposed to coastal hazards. This information does not relate to specific management options such as planned retreat. The next stage of Council preparing their Coastal Management Program will involve developing responsible and viable management actions for the Eurobodalla coastline. This includes actions to minimise the risk and exposure of the community to coastal hazards." Council, here is a wake up call that you need to be seen to be applying the same rules on one side of the Clyde to the other. Name and address supplied. Editors Note: On September 15th, 2017 The Beagle received the following response in answer to its question regarding constraints that might be imposed given that the level of the Batemans Bay Bowling Club site is on the same level as the CBD due to the very real fact that there is a creek (the same body of water as the Clyde River) directly adjacent to the site. You have requested comment about constraints to development on the former Batemans Bay Bowling Club site. We are not able to provide an exact statement about constraints as Council could only determine the exact development constraints of this site in the context of the proposed future use of the site. We have however aimed to provide you with information that is relevant to the article you are proposing to write. I presume you are using this as background research, but if you use any content directly please attribute it to a Council spokesperson. The risks to the former Batemans Bay Bowling Club site from sea level rise are low and very manageable. Site specific details of inundation are: the site has a low point of around 2.0 m AHD in the existing car park and a high point of around 2.9 m AHD. The degree of projected hazard at the site is not a constraint in terms of what can be built such as commercial and residential development, and community facilities such as an aquatic centre or arts space. Even the worst case scenario could be easily mitigated with fill which would be a requirement of Council if the site was to be developed and or subdivided. Council’s approach to development in areas potentially at risk from inundation scales the development controls from residential as the most conservative (highest floor level) to commercial uses as the least conservative. The Interim Coastal Hazards Adaptation Code (2015) prescribes a range of scenarios for sea level rise depending on the proposed use of a site. Residential development applies a planning consideration of: projected inundation from a 1 in 100 (1%) storm that is likely to occur within a 50 year planning period (up to 2065) This level is 2.46 m AHD plus 500mm free board 2.96 would be the floor level for any new residential development. Could be achieved through floor levels of raising natural ground surface. Commercial development applies a planning consideration of: Projected inundation from a 1 in 20 (5%) storm that is likely to occur within a 50 year planning period (up to 2065) 2.3m AHD plus 300mm free board Height of floors = 2.6mAHD. Based on the above, the majority of the former Batemans Bay Bowling Club site is unencumbered for commercial uses. A combination of commercial and residential would mean the site is reasonably unconstrained if commercial was on ground floor, however some fill may be required to achieve a perfectly level site.
